Imijrovement in harvesters



R. HFFHEINS.

- Harvester.

Y No. 35.315.

` Patented May 20, 1862..

` .To all whom, it may concern! `Be itknown that-,1, REUEEN HoEEHEINsof Dover, in the icountyof :York and State of L Pennsylvania, have -invented certainnew and i "useful Improvements in` Machines for Harvesting Grain;` and Ido hereby declare the y vfollowingtobe a full and exact descriptionof the same, referencevbeing had to the accompa`` "nying drawings, making part of thisspecification, inwhich-` Y. Figure l isa plan of aharvestingmachine `witlrmy improvements; Fig. 2is aside elevation of the same with one wheel removed. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation.`

y fSimilarlletters of reference indicate correspending parts in theseveral figures. y

,My said invention consists in certain im;

p provementsin `the manner of mounting and Ioperatinga revolvingrake, `as will be herein# `after more fully explained. y

To enable othersskilled in the art to make and use my invention," I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

` A represents the main frame of the machine,

and a a portion of the draft-pole.

l land B a wheel running loosely on the said `axle.`

y. D is asegmentalplatform, provided witlra divider, E, at 4its outer end, resting upon a roller, e.

Y F is a dra VMw-bar, connected at front by a f universal joint to the frame A, and `attached y y `at back to a shoe, j, upon which the inner side of the platform may rest.

l beneath theright-handrear corner ofthe main t `frame and at theother to the draw-barF or shoef.. l. I ,y n

His a link by which the inner end of the y platform is suspended from the back of the I isa post rigidly secured to the inner side of the platform, and inelining over the rear of the main frame."4 3 y "i is abrace-rodextending from the drawi bar tothe said post to support the ,latter at J` is a box mounted onthe topof the post I,

. Krotates. The rakes or `reel-arms L L` `are mountedvin` couplesupon the ends `of horizony wjUNrrE-D Simrsl y speencannforling part of Letters 'Patent No. alm'dateu May 20,1862.

` B is a driving-wheel secured to the axle (l,

S2 S3, for supporting the same.

is a lateral brace-rod, hinged at one end l l and constituting the bearing in which the disk'` y tal shafts M M', whichare journaled at/right PATENT OFFICE.

. i"EUINIE'EN' HoEErrEINsoE novER, rENNsYLvANIA.

` rMPRovEMENT IN HARVESTERS.

angles across the rotating disk K. The obliquepositions of the rakes upon the shafts M Mare clearly shown inthe drawings, and the manner'in which they are elevated to pass .over the frame and lowered to. incline the standing grain over the cutting apparatus and remove grain from the gavels on the platform will `be hereinafter explained.

l c is a cog-wheel secured to the shaft C, and gearing with a pinion, fn, upon a secondary shaft, N, which carries also aclutohepulley, O, fitted loosely thereon, but rotating,when the machine is moving forward,`by means of av pin, n, upon the shaft, taking into the notched teeth upon the-face of the pulley O.

o is a spiral spring employed to hold the pulley in contact with the pin n. 1 `A band, l?, passes around the pulley O, over the tension-pulleys p p, at the outer end of a sw'iveled and yielding rod, Q, 'and around a pulley, R, journaled in a stationary segment, S, which is attached to the top of the. post I, beneath therakehead. Gearing r r r2 r3 transmits motion from the pulley R to the rake-head K, rotating the latter in a horizontal plane.

concentric ranges of cogs, s sf, for elevating the Ihe segment S is formed with two rakes-or reel-arms, and twoconcentric ways, The shaft M isprovided at each Vend with a cogged seg.- ment, m, taking into the cogs s, and the shaft M with'a cogged segment, m, taking into the cogs s.

maare stops upon the shafts M to limit their rotation. Y y

m* are arms which pass between guideiianges s4. y l n m3 are arms which rest upon the ways si, to support the rakes L in their elevated posi tion.

The cutting apparatus is not represented,

andk may be constructed and operated in any i.

backward and upward completely over the frame, and causing the reel-arm, which is at-` tached in frnnt to the same shaftM, todescend at the side of the wheel, where it operates to present and hold the standing grain to the action of the cutters, and so passes over the platform. By the time the last-mentioned reelarm reaches the point to be elevated over the frame the irst has advanced so far as to pass off the way S2 and descend clear of the wheel, and so the work progresses. In like manner the rakes L operate rst as reel-arms, and passing backward in contact with the platform remove therefrom all the grain that has collected and deposit it in a gavel upon the ground. On passing oi` the platformthe rake is held and guided by its short arm m4, 'passing between the anges S4, and its cogs m are there# by presented in correct position to the cogs s', by means of which it is elevated, as above described in reference to the reel-arms. rIhe elevated rake is maintained by the short arm m3 resting upon the way S3, until it has passed around sufficiently far to descend clear of the wheel B. The supporting-arm m3 then leaves the way S2, and the rake is carried down by the ascent of that attached to the opposite end of the shaft M.

The presentillustration shows two rakes and two plain reel-arms. It is obvious that any even number of arms may be employed, and as many may be provided with teeth as preference or the nature of the work may dictate. Two analogous' devices have been described for elevating the arms. Either of these, or any other substantially equivalent device, may be adopted, as I do not restrict myself to the specic means described for accomplishing this result.

It will be seen that the platform is so attached and supported as to permit it to conform with the utmost freedom to inequalities of the surface of the ground, and the standard mits the band to conform to the changing angle of the pulley as the outer end of the platform rises and falls. The reel and rake can thus operate with complete effect under all circumstances.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim therein as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A combined reel and rake rotating upon a vertical axis, and having its arms successively turned up into an inverted position to pass over the main frame, substantially as explained.

2.V The inclined standard I, rigidly mounted upon a loosely-hinged platforni,and employed to support a revolving reel and rake in an unchangeable position in relation to the said platform without obstructing the free motion of the latter.

3. The yielding and swiveled rod Q, operat= ing in combination with the band P and pulleys O and R, in the manner and for the purposes herein shown and explained.

The above specification of myimprovement vin reaping-machines signed this 27th day of February, A1862.

REUBEN HOFFHEINS. Vitnesses:

OcTAvrUs KNIGHT, JAMES H. GRIDLEY. 

